Fort Lee declares state of emergency following Sandy

Fort Lee police temporarily block an area on Inwood Terrace with barricades and caution tape Tuesday to contain a downed tree caused by Hurricane Sandy.

FORT LEE - Fort Lee declared a state of emergency Tuesday, instituting a 6 p.m. pedestrian curfew and suspending all Halloween activities as a result of damage wrought by Hurricane Sandy.

"It's very bad here," said Mayor Mark Sokolich. "There are some sections that look OK and there are some that look like a war zone."

Center Avenue is among the most heavily damaged, with a large downed tree straddling the width of the sectioned-off street.

Sokolich estimates that 95 percent of the town is without power.

Emergency crews are awaiting permission from PSE&G to remove downed trees and wires, he said. The town cannot begin major cleanup efforts until the company determines whether the wires are safe to remove.

Emergency crews today are "completely handcuffed," he said.

Sokolich said he might close many of the borough's major thoroughfares because of the unstable wire situation.

"It'll get everyone pissed off at me again but I'm going to do what's best for my community," he said.

Though the town had no reports of significant injuries as of Tuesday, there is a potential for "more and greater" injury now that the storm is over, he said.

"People become complacent," said Sokolich. "The storm is gone, the winds are gone but meanwhile there are all of these live downed wires."

Emergency crews transported about 100 people to safety Monday. About a dozen residents spent the night in the Fort Lee Community Center, which was briefly transformed into a makeshift shelter.

Sokolich said he hopes to convert the center into a haunted mansion next weekend for the thousands of Fort Lee children who have to forego trick-or-treating this year.

He is urging residents to stay indoors, conserve water and stay off the streets between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. Unstable trees, flying debris and other safety hazards continue to threaten the town, he said.